Nearby Bakong is the earliest of the temple mountains, which later became the signature of Khmer kings. It is a giant pyramid, its cardinal points marked by earnest elephants. The decoration is spartan, but Bakong was, nonetheless, the blueprint for its more celebrated cousins such as Baphuon and Bayon.

Aim to clear out by 2pm, before the coaches disgorge their crowds. Head back to Angkor and take in Ta Nei, where huge trees cloak the crumbling stones. This is a jungle trek for beginners — lightweight stuff, but it still deters most visitors. Make the most of the tranquillity: it’s in short supply at your next stop, romantic Ta Prohm.

Ta Prohm is a reminder that while empires rise and fall, riotous nature marches on. It is preserved exactly as when first discovered by the French explorer Henri Mouhot — with serpent- like tree roots strangling the stonework. Don’t miss the Tomb Raider tree, northeast of the main sanctuary, where Angelina Jolie picked some jasmine, the earth opened up, and she found herself fighting for her life inside Pinewood Studios.

It's time to think about sunset and a trip to the hilltop temple of Phnom Krom. Scale the steps to the summit and soak up panoramic views of the sun dissolving into the Tonlé Sap lake.

Page 2: Day 2 - 3
Page 3: Angkor A to Z

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DAY 2

It’s another early start today, because you’re heading off to discover some outposts of empire. By 7am you should be coasting down Highway 6 to Dam Dek, on the road to Beng Mealea. This was built by King Suryavarman II as a prototype for Angkor Wat itself: it has just the same floor plan. But it’s been abandoned for centuries, allowing nature to run amok.

Clambering about in this titanic temple is the ultimate Indiana Jones experience. And if you’re not much of a clamberer, a new walkway leads straight to the middle, constructed for the filming of Jean-Jacques Annaud’s Two Brothers. Next, we’re off to visit the “River of a Thousand Lingas”, deep in the jungle at Kbal Spean. Getting to it involves a climb, so boost your energy beforehand with a leisurely lunch at the stalls round about.

“Rediscovered” by French researcher Jean Boulbet in 1969, Kbal Spean was only opened to visitors after the defeat of the Khmer Rouge in 1998, and few foreigners make the journey here. The river flows down to the Tonlé Sap lake, and in ancient times its holy waters breathed life into the rice fields of the empire via the most complex irrigation system the world had ever seen.

The Khmers venerated its limestone bed with a riot of carvings, including the delicate deities Vishnu and Shiva with their consorts — some coquettishly concealed beneath a veneer of sand or weed. And there is a small waterfall below the carved riverbed, perfect for cooling off after the hot climb.

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